Monkey See...

My friend Jen from Gourmet celebrated her little boy's first birthday last weekend, so in following with her animal / jungle theme, I took a cue from Curious George to make these custom monkey faces. Looking at them makes me happy!!

Ushering in Autumn

Mom turned 60 this fall, so we all got together at The Rifle Club in NYC to celebrate. I opted against big "60" cookies and instead chose these cheery fall leaves that we set at each person's plate.

The Big "One"

My friend Nancy celebrated her son's first birthday this October. For little Jake, I crafted these #1s for the big day.

Shark Attack

When my nephew turned 2, I attempted a "cupcake" cake to feed his obsession with trains (and sweets!) And since we were at the beach, I had to round out the dessert assortment with a selection of cookies in the shape os "shaaaaks" and the number two. He was one wired kid by the end of the day.

Spring Birthday Mania

With the flurry of recent birthdays, my baking skills were put to the test. Several friends turned 30 this spring, and each called for a different treat. Some of favorites are here. My friend Marley's called for bright cheery pink and chocoloate brown.

And Alexis's party was at the New York Athletic Club, so while I was tempted to make her cookies bold - like her personality - I kept the color pallette to subdued yellows and blues to reflect the color of the sun as it set that evening.

These are my annual Valentine treats. Pucker up.

Let it Snow...

Each Christmas, I bake up a few batches of snowflake cookies. The fun is that - like real snowflakes - no two are exactly the same, so I have fun coming up with new patterns and designs. These are some shots of this years' best.

A Little Fishy...

My nephew William turned 1 this past summer, so I upped the ante and tried my hand at a cake. We can already tell he's a nautical little guy because he loves the ocean, so we went with a cake shaped like a fish. I used a mold and created a 2-layer version, then piped buttercream frosting in small dots on the entire cake to give him his scales. Chocolate chips helped shape the tail, and blue M&M's (his mommie's favorite) created an ocean. He went to TOWN!

I Do...

My friend Amy got married at the Jersey shore last summer, and I made these wedding dress cookies for her shower. The third one is a replica of her actual dress (close enough!).

And starfish rounded out the nautical theme.

Spooky Treats!!

My friends hosted "Kate-o-ween" each October, as a tribute to one of our favorite holidays (and to yours truly). For our final soiree at their Manhattan apartment, we served spooky ghosts to guests. All treat, no trick.

Rollin'...

We didn't know if my sister was having a boy or a girl, so I decorated baby carriages in pink and blue for her shower. (She eventually had a boy!) Definitely one of my favorite projects.

Cheers!

I created these martini and Cosmo glasses for a New Years' Eve party. The icing was a little runny, but it made the cookies shiny which worked out in the end, since they looked "glassy."

The lobster that launched 1,000 more...

...and began my journey into the art of cookie baking and design. I created this little guy for my sister's engagement party in the spring of 2004. Since she and her husband were tying the knot in Cape Cod, it seemed the perfect treat to celebrate their big day. (Pardon his broken claw...the water must have been rough that day.)